Tank car



' Oct. 30, 1923.

' 1,472,488 A. M. NELSON TANK AR Filed July 23. 1921 s Sheets-Sheet 1 (Jct; 30

A. M. NELSON TANK GAR Filed July 23. 1921 SSheets-Sheet 5 Patented Get. 30, 1923.

Linnea tiNifiE-D STATES PATENT caries.

AXEL 1V1. NELsON, OF CHICAGO,

can CORPORATION, or CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION, F WEST vIne NIA- TANK can.

Application filed July 23,

T 0 all w 7mm it may concern:

Be it known that I, Axni. M. NELSON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Tank Cars, of which the following is a specification.

My improvement relates more particularly to the tank portion of a tank car, and more especially to the means for supporting within the tank the coils of pipe through the medium of which the contents of the tank are heated.

My primary objects are to provide im provements in such supporting means, to the end that the assembling and uniting of the pipes on initial installation thereof may be facilitated, repairs to the pipes or to the tank below the pipes may be readily made, and the cleaning of the tank facilitated, and other objects as will be manifest from the following description.

Referring to the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a view inside elevation, with certain parts broken away and'others in section, of a car tank constructed in accordance with my invention. Figure 2 is a plan view of the heating pipes and the supporting brackets therefor. Figure 3 is a section taken at the line 3-3 on Fig. 1 and viewed in the direction of the arrow; and Figure 4:, a view in end elevation of the right hand end of the tank in Fig. 1.

The car tank shown is represented at 5, this tank being of well known construction and comprising a cylindrical body portion 6 surmounted by the usual dome 6 and the end plates 7 and 8 which telescope at their annular flanged portions 9 and 10 with the ends of the body portion 6 to which they are secured in any desirable manner.

The heating coils are shown as provided in two units, one at each side of the bottom longitudinal center line of the tank, each of these units being in the form of a coil represented at 11 and formed of a allcl pipes 12 and return bends with the opposite ends of the pipes 12, the ends of these coils being represented at 14, 15, 16 and 17. The coil units, which extend lengthwise of the tank, are transversely curved as represented in Fig. 3 to extend substantially concentric with the wall of the body portion 6 of the tank, and are sup- 13 connected section being shown, these series of par- 1921. Serial No. 487,091.

ported, preferably in spaced relation, to the side wall of the tank, on a bracket structure which is formed of two sections 18 and 19 'which'are transversely curved to correspond with the curvature of thecoil sections 11, these bracket sections being hingedly supported at their lower ends preferably coincident with the bottom longitudinal center line of the tank to permit them to be independently gether with the pipe coils supported thereon, as for example to the positions represented in dotted lines in Fig. 3.

Each of comprises a series of bars 20 which preferably extend in parallel relation and are provided of any suitable number, four for'e'ach bars being secured swung upwardly, to-' ILLINOIS, ssIe on 'ro GENERAL AMERICAN TANK the bracket sections 18 and 19 at their upper ends by bolts 21 to cradle end brackets 21 affording flanges 22 which rest against the inner surface of the body 6 of the tank and to which they may be connected as by the rivets 23. The bars 20 intermediate'their ends are provided with cradle brackets 24 of general yoke-shape as shown, these brackets being secured to the bars 20 as by means of the bolts 25 and at their oiitwardlydirected ends 24 to the body 6 of the tank, as by the rivets 26. The lower ends of the bars 20 are reduced as represented at 27 to cause them to overlap as shown, at which portions they extend between angle uprights 28 secured, in pairs, as by means of the rivets the tank along its longitudinal center line, these pairs of uprights forming supports for hinge pins 30 extending therethrough and through the overlapping end portions 27 of opposed bars 20. The various pipes forming the coil units 11 rest upon the bracket sections 18 and 19 and are secured thereto as through the bottom of the Ubolts represented at 31 which partially embrace,

29, to the body 6 of V nected together by the pipe 33, may serve as the inlet for the heating medium, and the pipes 15 and 16 as the outlets therefor.

Further securing means for the pipe coils are represented at 34:, these means being in the form of brackets secured to the inner surface of the body 6 ofthe tank and pro vided with U-bolts 35 which partially surround the adjacent return pipe coils, anchorages to prevent the coils from shifting lengthwise of the tank. s

In the assembly of the variousparts of the structure referred to, the pipe sections 12 and 13 introduced into the tankin disassembled relation, are assembled to the position shown in Fig. 2 and in this condition are connected together, preferably by welding them, at the joints therebetween represented at 36.

It will be noted that the pipe coil sections thus provided at each side of the center line of the car, together with the bracket arm members 20 form radiator structures at opposite sides of the car each with a. hinge connection to the car at substantially the bottom center line thereof, and that when the bolts 21 and 25 connecting the cradle mein- I bers 21 and 24 with the arm members 20, and the U-bolts 35, are removed, these radiator structuresmay be swung upwardly on their hinges independently of each other to the dotted line positions in Fig. 3, thereby greatly facilitating the making of repairs to these pipes, and the shell of the tank below the pipes and greatly facilitatingth-e cleaning of the tank.

In the particular construction illustrated it is contemplated that the pipes 14:, 15, 16

as by welding their normal position.

bends 13 of the these means serv ng primarily as structure formed 1 ,avaass and 17 be cut through at the interior of the tank, in order to permit of these radiator structures being swung upon the hinged connections as stated, these severed portions of the pipes being again connected together them together after the radiator structures have been swung back to It will be understood, however, that if desired couplings maybe provided vfor the outlet and inlet portions of the pipes, to avoid cutting and reuniting of these pipes for the purpose stated.

While I have illustrated and described a particular construction embodying my invention, I

be variously modified and altered without departing from the spirit of my invention.

limit it thereto as the same may 1 What 1 claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

j. 1. A cylindrical tank containing a bracket of a plurality of curved bars extending adjacent the curved side wall of the tank and hingedly connected with the tank, and a radiator coil carried by said bars. 1

2. A cylindrical tank containing bracket structures located at opposite sides of the center line of the tank and each comprising a plurality of curved arms spaced apartand extending adjacent the curved sides of the tank. means hingedly connectingsaid bars at their lower ends to said tank, and separate radiator coils extending lengthwise of he tank and crosswise of said bars and carried by the latter.

AXEL M. NELSON.

do not wish to be understood as. intending to 

